Seventh Grade
by Marlee-esque
Summary: The daily lives of the Bohos in seventh grade. Maureencentric, occasional chapter from someone else's point of view. Set in 2008. Read first "Info Chapter" for more... well, info. I suppose you could call this AU.
1. Chapter 0: Info Chapter

Just a quick thing I want to say before the story gets started. I realize that I am breaking many basic RENT fanfiction rules her.

1. A middle-school story.

2. A middle-school story set in 2008.

3. Having every character be straight.

4. Completely noncanon couples.

But wait! I can explain!

1. Well, I think middle school stories are fun, so tough cookies.

2. I tried as hard as I could to get around the whole 2008 thing, but this is loosely based on things that happen to my friends and me, and many of those things involve MySpace, cell phones, and iPods. I promise, if I could make this set in the years that the RENT people normally _would_ be in middle school, I would, but, unless you're all okay with numerous large anachronisms, it has to be in 2008.

3. They're in seventh grade. I realize that some people _are_ gay and lesbian in seventh grade, I don't think our dear RENT characters were gay and lesbian in middle school.

4. This brings me back to point number three. How can I have canon couples if they're straight? I suppose I _could_ have MimiRoger, but, this just so happens to be a one-sided MaureenRoger story, a story where Mimi and Benny are crushing on each other, and possibly a MarkJoanne section. I apologize if any of this upsets anyone, but that brings me back to point one. It's my story, and if you don't like it, tough cookies!

xoxo

Marlee Grace


	2. Chapter 1: Feb 1 08 Morning

Hopping off the bus, I realized that people were staring. Not subtle stares, not nonchalant stares, but wide-eyed, openmouthed stares. And I knew exactly why. My outfit was absurd. My leggings were white, decorated with small yellow dots, neon green stars, and the occasional pink or orange heart. I heard the assorted snippet of a whisper: _Where did she get _those_ ridiculous things? _or _They'd be cute if they matched the outfit._ I suppose the latter was true. The rest of the outfit consisted of the mandatory Scarsdale Middle white polo shirt, and an extremely pale yellow bubble skirt adorned with little pink beaded flowers. The accessories completed the absolutely silly getup. One neon green star earring to match the neon green stars on the leggings, and one yellow circle earring to match the yellow circles on the leggings. The long string of fake pearls was a last-minute touch as I had rushed out of my bedroom. The stares continued. I didn't mind, in fact, I enjoyed them. I'm an actress, born for the limelight. When I reached the bench that was, but unspoken consent, my and seventh-grade friends' before-school hangout, I reminded myself that this time, I would not conform, I would not shrink in the popular girls' condescending glances. For once, I would be an individual. I would not plead temporary insanity in response to the others' questioning of what I was thinking when I got dressed this morning. I would not slink to the Ladies Room to remove my leggings, my earrings, and my uniqueness. I sat down, and an instant later, I spotted my friends. Well, some of them anyway. It was just Mimi and Roger. I waved to them, and they came over.

"I saw my best friend today! I texted my best friend, too!" Mimi squealed. Roger and I both rolled our eyes. Mimi called _everyone_ her best friend.

"Which one?" I sighed. It was best to just go along with what Mimi said. She might be bubbly at times, but she had a fiery temper.

"Guess!" Mimi giggled. My shoulders sagged. I hated this game.

"Well, let's see," Roger cut in. "You usually sit with Maureen, Joanne, and me at first period, so you can't be talking about us. Second period you sit with Joanne, Mark, and I. Third, you're all alone in your dumbshit math class," Roger continued. Mimi pouted. We were in honors math, all of us except Mimi.

"My mom wants me to work with my grade level!" Mimi cried. Roger ignored her.

"Fourth period you're all alone in drama class, 'cause none of us are into that crap, except for Maureen, and she has drama eighth period. Fifth period you sit with Joanne, Mark, and I _again_. Sixth you sit with Angel, Collins, Joanne, Mark, Maureen, and I. Seventh you have art with Collins, Joanne, and Maureen. Eighth you sit with Angel. Now then, that's _all_ of your friends except Benny. Are you _really_ that excited to see Benny?"

"How the _hell_ did you figure out it was Benny? Are you tapping my cell phone? Are you in the fricking CIA or something?"

"No. I just read your text messages. The whole process-of-elimination listing of your friends was just so you'd shut up for a few minutes." Roger smiled.

"I hate you," Mimi mumbled. I knew she didn't mean it. Roger was one of her _best_ best friends. I often teased her and asked her if she liked him, but we all knew she didn't.

"Well, now that _that_ ordeal is over, wanna walk around and see if we can find anybody?"

"Sure, why not?" Roger said. We wandered a bit, before arriving at the front door of the library. Collins was leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for the occasional sixth grader to walk by. I saw Collins say something to a tiny-sixth grader, who walked away in a mix of disgust and horror. We snuck up next to him, comical detective style, hoping to catch what he said.

"Suck my balls?" he asked a sixth-grader casually.

"Oh my God," I snickered.

"_Total_ Collins," Roger said with a nod.

"Oh, best friii-eeend!" Mimi called, shattering our cover.

"You would _so_ never be a spy," Roger grumbled good-naturedly. Collins whipped around, grinning.

"_What_ are you doing?" Mimi giggled. Collins rolled his eyes and didn't answer.

"The funniest part about this is," I said, "Is that everyone thinks because Collins is so smart, he can do no wrong. But he's _so_ vulgar..." I trail off. Collins seemed to perk up a bit. We all looked in the direction he was looking, and spotted a scrawny boy approaching. Collins called out, in a booming voice, the same thing he had said to the terrified sixth-grader. The figure whipped around.

"Holy crap!" Collins hissed.

"It's _Mark_!" I giggle, unable to ignore the hilarity of the situation.

"What the fu-" Mark started, until he realized it was Collins. "You're freakin' insane. What if I was a _teacher_, and you just yelled that?"

"Hate to break it to ya, dude, but you look _nothing_ like a teacher," Roger laughed, punching his friend on the arm. I looked at Mimi and rolled my eyes. Both of us knew that the girls had been kicked out of the conversation once the manly arm-punching began.

"So!" Mimi said brightly, hoping to turn the focus of the conversation back to something she could control. "Who wants to look for other people?" We all gave affirmative-sounding mumbled answers and began walking around the school once again.

We arrived at the bench where we had started. There was Joanne, curled up against the armrests, headphones covering her ears. Mimi skipped up, and, wordlessly, took an earphone and pressed it against her ear to see what music Joanne was listening to. Immediately, she let go, letting that half of the headphones snap against the side of Joanne's head.

"What was _that_ for?" Joanne asked incredulously.

"Jo, either I'm insane, or that wasn't music. That sounded like some old guy listing the menu at a fancy restaurant," Mimi said.

"It's a learn-French tape," Joanne said, sounding mildly annoyed. We all tried to stifle giggles. "Shut up," Joanne said with a small smile.

"Can you take some time out of your busy French-learning schedule to help us find..." I trailed off, counting those of us standing there, trying to figure out who was missing. "Angel? Is that it?"

"Well, there's Benny, too," Mimi piped up. I bristled slightly.

"Just Angel then," I say with a smooth finality. The others shared a silent look. "_What?_" I ask.

"We know you and Benny aren't the best of friends," Roger said carefully. I glared at him.

"Understatement of the year," Mark grumbled. I glared at him, too.

"But he's _our_ friend," Collins finished. I attempted to glare at Roger, Mark, and Collins at the same time. I did not succeed. I hated myself for being this way, but I couldn't stop myself. _Look at Maureen,_ I saw them thinking, _Over-dramatic, over-emotional, compulsive-liar Maureen._ I shook my head to clear my thoughts.

"Whatever," I said. Just then, I spotted Angel, way over on the other side of the portables. I waved to him, and he ran over. Mark let out a single, long whistle.

"Angel's _fast_," he said. We all nodded.

"Hey," Angel said. His breath was coming in small gasps, but we could see that the run had barely fazed him.

"How did you _do_ that?" I asked. Angel shrugged.

"Small bone structure?" he guessed, the question clearly not meaning much to him. Just then, the bell rang, signaling that classes were to start in two minutes.

"Shit," we all said simultaneously. We all headed in the direction of first-period science, talking about random, useless crap the whole way.


End file.
